Irish War Cry

Irish War Cry raced twice as a two-year-old, winning both his maiden race and the Marylander Stakes at Laurel Park Racecourse.[1]

Irish War Cry began his three-year-old season in February at Gulfstream Park, where he was ridden by Joel Rosario and won the Holy Bull Stakes by a solid 3+3⁄4 length margin, defeating challengers Gunnevera and Classic Empire.[4] In his next race, a month later, Gunnevera turned the tables and won the Fountain of Youth Stakes, with Practical Joke second while Irish War Cry tired and finished a distant seventh, 21 lengths behind the winners.[5] He came back in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Race Track, with a new jockey, Rajiv Maragh, winning by 3+1⁄2 lengths.[6] His inconsistency puzzled pundits, who noted that he ran a 101 Beyer Speed Figure in his first and third races, but only a 63 in the Fountain of Youth.[7] Trainer Graham Motion was relieved by the win, "He had to step up and prove his other races weren’t a fluke."[8]

He qualified for the 2017 Kentucky Derby as the first New Jersey bred horse to enter the race since 1992. The last time a New Jersey horse had won the Derby was Cavalcade in 1934, when the 86-year-old de Tomaso was a child. The colt's success was viewed as a good omen for the beleaguered horse racing industry in his home state, but fans were disappointed that he was given the number 17 post, a position from which no horse has ever won the Derby. However, the draw did not bother Motion, who quipped, "Someone’s going to win from the 17 hole one day."[2] He went off as the second betting choice just behind the favorite and eventual winner Always Dreaming. He had a poor start, where he ducked to the inside and caused difficulties for other horses, but at one point challenged for the lead before he faded in the stretch and finished 10th.[9]

After the Derby, Motion announced his intention to bypass the remaining Triple Crown races and instead focus on New Jersey's most prestigious race, the Haskell Invitational in late July. However, Irish War Cry was training so well that Motion decided to enter him in the 2017 Belmont Stakes on June 10.[10] When several top contenders missed the Belmont, Irish War Cry became the favorite for the race with Tapwrit as the second choice.[11] In the absence of any true speed horses to set the pace, Irish War Cry went to the lead and set a moderate pace. Rounding the turn into the stretch, Irish War Cry opened up a lead before Tapwrit responded. As the gap between the two narrowed, Tapwrit started bearing out to the center of the track before drifting back towards the rail, where he bumped lightly with Irish War Cry. In the final strides, Tapwrit began to pull away and ultimately won by two lengths.[12][13]

"We were hoping for a stalking trip," said Motion. "We were hoping that somebody else would go for it. We were forced to go to Plan B. Turning for home, I thought we just might have it. But it's a long way home."[14]

"He ran a real good race; he tried hard to the end," said jockey Rajiv Maragh. "When I (entered the stretch), I had horse left and I knew it was going to take a really big run from another hose to catch me. I was pretty confident turning for home. I saw the other horse coming and obviously a race of this magnitude I'm going to ride hard to the wire, and even when I was ahead you know they're going to be coming at you, but my horse never really gave up. He ran hard to the end he just got a little bit overpowered late in the race, but I'm proud of his effort."[13]